November 25, 2013 -- As the very first top prize winner in the “Win up to $2,000 a Month for Life” instant game, Louis Martinez of Danbury, a self-described jack-of-all-trades man, walked out of CT Lottery headquarters in Rocky Hill this morning with a spring in his step and a life that will never be the same.

Martinez came upon his good luck when he cashed a $25 winning lottery ticket at Tienda Ecuador convenience store, located at 72 Lake Avenue in Danbury. At that moment, he decided to take a chance again—this time on a $1 “Win up to $2,000 a Month for Life” scratch ticket.

“Normally, I scratch the whole ticket when I play a game. I don’t know why, but this time I just scratched off the barcode and scanned it in the ticket checker,” Martinez said. “When the ticket checker said, ‘Congratulations, $2,000 a Month for Life Top Prize Winner,’ I was so excited. So was my wife when I went home and told her.”

Of the game’s two top prize payment options, $2,000 a month for life with a guaranteed minimum total payout of $480,000 (over 20 years), or a $400,000 one-time cash lump sum, Martinez chose the lump sum payment.

“My wife and I have been renting and trying to get a house for many years,” Martinez told Lottery officials. “Now’s the time; we can finally buy a house.”

Win up to $2,000 a Month for Life is one of four “For Life” scratch games recently introduced by the CT Lottery. The game series has been popular with players, due in large part to the value of its top prize, which can be extraordinarily life changing.

A lottery retailer since 2008, Tienda Ecuador will receive a $6,000 bonus check from the CT Lottery for selling Martinez his top prize winning ticket.